MLB DFS action on Tuesday, April 6, features 14 games across four slates with giant contests on Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel. Before locking in lineups, make sure to check out Awesemo’s daily fantasy baseball top stacks, picks, rankings and projections. Let’s dig into some MLB DFS picks and daily fantasy baseball stacks including the New York Yankees, New York Mets and San Diego Padres.
Don’t forget to head over to the Awesemo MLB DFS HOME PAGE for more great written daily fantasy baseball content, including FREE daily article series: Spotlight Pitchers, MLB DFS Tournament Strategy and MLB Cheat Sheets for all the major DFS sites.
MLB DFS Picks: Spotlight Hitters and Stacks, Tuesday, April 6th
Yahoo Stack of the Day: New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies — 4.8 implied runs
Yes, gamers can absolutely target the Rockies in Coors Field against Luke Weaver. Now that that is out of the way, let’s look at the Mets, who are projected to be overlooked by the masses today. This iteration of the Mets offense is one of the best in years.
Bringing in Francisco Lindor and signing him to a massive contract has signaled that the Mets are ready to spend. Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto have been grinding it out for the last few seasons, but they have been getting better every year. Budding superstar Pete Alonso needs no introduction, and Dominic Smith, Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis are all going to have their DFS-relevant moments this season.
It is going to be a pleasant evening in Philadelphia with game time temperatures in the mid-60s. Keep in mind that Citizens Bank Park does boost home runs. Chase Anderson is one of the rare righties that actually has found sustained success against opposite-handed hitters. However, he has also been very lucky, with a 3.81 ERA compared to a 4.87 xFIP since the beginning of the 2018 season. His 21.4% strikeout rate is above average, though his 1.29 HR/9 and 8.7% walk rate with just 21.4% soft contact indicate he is playing with fire. Righties have smoked him for a 2.17 HR/9 and a 40.5% hard-hit rate in that same timeframe, which shapes up nicely for Alonso’s home run probability.
[JOINMLB+]
Early Slate
New York Yankees vs. RHP Dean Kremer — 5.1 implied runs
Dean Kremer had just 19.1 innings in AAA in 2019 and made his debut during the pandemic-shortened season. In four starts he went 18.2 innings and had a 4.82 ERA and a 10.61 K/9. While he is one of the better Baltimore prospects, he has not faced much top-level competition, with only 38.0 total innings above the AA level.
Today should provide the full complement of Yankees hitters. Though they had just seven hits yesterday, they also had seven walks and managed to plate seven runs. Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge will be the primary targets, and they each notched their first home runs of the season Monday. D.J. LeMahieu has proven he is one of the best all-around hitters in the game, even outside of Coors Field, and Aaron Hicks provides some salary relief. Jay Bruce is quite discounted on the DFS sites considering he is a lefty who should have a fair number of ducks on the pond when his number comes up in the batting order. Finally, Gary Sanchez, Gleyber Torres and whoever is the third outfielder offer some differentiation.
Late Slate
San Diego Padres vs. RHP Aaron Sanchez — 4.7 implied runs
Sincere condolences to Padres fans after seeing Fernando Tatis Jr. suffer a shoulder subluxation Monday night. It is not known yet his timetable for return, but hopefully it will be measured in weeks and not months. This should boost Jake Cronenworth to a prime spot in the order, and he is an excellent discount dandy across the DFS sites in a lefty/righty matchup with Aaron Sanchez.
Last year Sanchez was unable to play, as he was rehabbing after suffering a right shoulder injury in his fourth start after being dealt to the Astros just prior to the 2019 trade deadline. Despite a reputation in the MLB DFS world as somewhat of a strikeout pitcher, Sanchez has essentially been league average, and his ground ball rate has decreased over his career while his fly ball and home run rates have been going in the opposite direction.
In his last 528 matchups against same-handed batsmen, Sanchez has a 4.99 ERA with a 4.82 xFIP, which is mediocre at best, albeit with just a 0.91 HR/9. Lefties have fared better in this timeframe, with Sanchez’s 551 plate appearances against them combining for a 5.91 ERA, 5.33 xFIP and 1.46 HR/9. Cronenworth and Eric Hosmer will be the lefties at the top of the order, and Wil Myers, Manny Machado and Tommy Pham are all accomplished hitters in same-handed situations. Switch-hitters Jurickson Profar and Victor Caratini will likely be in the bottom third of the order and are definitely in play on the short slate. On the main slate this discounted duo can be used for differentiation.
Final Thoughts for the Tuesday, April 6th MLB DFS Slate
Today should be a fun one with several short slates as well as a nice eight-game main slate. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a home run play on Yahoo may be a below-average MLB DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.
